Freakout on an Airplane
23rd December 2016
Dan Goldstein, a Brooklyn lawyer, and his “partner,” a college professor, were kicked off a plane at JFK airport this morning because Goldstein harangued Ivanka Trump just before takeoff. Ivanaka was with her husband and small children. Goldstein and his partner also had a child with them.
‘Speaking Truth to Power’ is the usual excuse. Of course, none of them would do that to Real Power, like Vladimir Putin.
It isn’t normal to harangue family members of public officials (or those soon to become public officials) whom one doesn’t like, as they try to go about their lives. And it’s downright creepy to harangue them in front of their children.
Goldstein’s defenders may say that Ivanka Trump isn’t a normal family member. She advises her father on policy and can almost be thought of as the First Lady.
I would respond that it isn’t normal to harangue the First Lady. Imagine the reaction if someone had harassed Michelle Obama in the coach section of a commercial flight. (Actually, it’s hard to imagine Michelle Obama on a commercial flight; she traveled in luxury).